[www.keralites.net] Chinese workers balance on flimsy planks with no ropes as they build road thousands of feet up a mountain

 

Chinese workers balance on flimsy planks with no ropes as they build road thousands of feet up a mountain
 

 

• Workers carry heavy planks and wheelbarrows full of concrete across wooden walkway thousands of feet in the air
• Men, who are just one step from death, have no ropes or safety harnesses and only hard hats to cushion their fall
• Officials in Pingjiang County, Hunan province, hope the path will attract thousands of tourists when it is complete

 

PUBLISHED: 08:54 GMT, 13 April 2015

For most workers, being told they're getting a raise at work is a cause for celebration, but not for these builders in China.

That's because they're constructing a mountain road thousands of feet above the ground in Pingjiang County, Hunan province.

With no ropes or safety harnesses, and only hard hats to protect them if they fall, these men spend their days hauling heavy planks and wheelbarrows full of cement over a rickety wooden walkway.

On the edge: Workers in China have been pictured building a walkway for tourists while perched thousands of feet up a mountain side in Pingjiang County, Hunan province

Precarious: The men spend their days carrying heavy planks of wood and wheelbarrows full of concrete across a flimsy-looking wooden walkway with so safety harnesses or ropes
 

Tipping point: Here, the builders are left standing on nothing more than rusty-looking scaffolding poles as they hammer them into the rock to extend the road further round the cliff
 

 

Attraction: Pingjiang is dominated by the Mufu mountain range and officials have tried to attract visitors to the small county by construction precarious walkways such as this one for tourists to walk along

In other images the builders can be seen perched on nothing more than rusty metal scaffolding poles as they hammer them into the mountainside to extend the walkway.

Chinese officials hope that the road will draw thousands more tourists to the area, as they flock to walk along the scenic route.

Under construction: The workers first assemble the scaffolding poles along the cliff before constructing a walkway of wooden planks along the top, and then use this as a base to construct a more stable concrete path
 

Don't look down: Without ropes or safety harnesses, and with only hard hats to protect them if they fall, these men assemble scaffolding along the cliff, which is the first stage of extending the walkway
 

Nerve-wracking: With little or no safety equipment, these are the brave men charged with helping to build this tourist attraction in Pingjiang County, south eastern China, which officials hope will bring tourists to the area
 

 

Danger: These men pour heavy concrete into moulds set into the mountain walls, with the whole structure balanced on top of wooden planks and rusty scaffolding poles

It is not known exactly where this walkway is being constructed, but it is very similar in appearance to another mountain path being built along the side of Shifou Mountain, in nearby Jiangxi province.

That road has been under construction since at least 2011, and also saw workers balancing on a flimsy 3ft-wide wooden walkway thousands of feet up a mountain.

Once completed, that road would have stretched for nearly two miles around the cliff top, making it China's longest mountain sightseeing road.

Engineer Yu Ji, 48, who has been building these roads for a decade, said: 'I don't feel it's so different from any other job. It's not as dangerous as people think. You just wear ropes then everything is OK.'

 

Heavy load: Workers are pictured filling in the bridge with concrete, with all the weight balanced on top of rickety wooden planks

 

Hard labour: The men are expected to spend their days hauling heavy wooden planks and wheelbarrows full of concrete back and forth across the walkway, despite being suspended thousands of feet in the air with no safety equipment

 

Toughing it out: These workers manage to look like they're enjoying themselves, despite being just one step away from death on this mountainside in south eastern China

Another glass-bottomed walkway opened in Pingjiang in 2014, suspended 600ft above the ground, it is actually a suspension bridge that stretches between two mountaintops.

Because it is only held up by steel cables which anchor it to the surrounding rocks, the bridge actually sways when the wind blows, making it especially terrifying for tourists to cross.

So many visitors get stuck on the bridge, their legs paralysed by fear, that the tourist board employs specially trained staff who are on hand to help them to the other side.

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